CHAPTER 2 – A PART TO PLAY
"Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress." ~ Mahatma Gandhi
Paul marched along the winding road back to the centre of town, his hands stuffed firmly in his pockets and distaste etched on every feature of his face. He barged senselessly past the children in his way, ignoring their wails and the insults that their parents hurled at him. And all the while, his head was full of fiery outrage and hidden contempt at what he'd just had to endure in the Banquet Hall twenty minutes earlier.
How dare that girl talk to me like that?! he scowled. 'Don't flatter yourself by thinking that I gave you that kiss out of free will!'…what a ridiculous joke! And the nerve of her even to kiss me in the first place! That girl's just lucky there were so many people around, or she'd have had to answer to my Pokémon for that stunt… then we'll see who goes red in the face… he sneered, but the brief display of happiness quickly disappeared.
Blushing, ha! Now that is ridiculous, he seethed, kicking at a broken bird-mask lying on the ground. The wood splintered and fell apart, and Paul shook his head wildly to try and clear it, but it did nothing to calm his anger, so he continued to stride along the footpath. It's not just that girl, it's the old man as well; they're both deluded! I wasn't blushing at all… I was ready to knock her out, that's what it was! Chosen One… what a pointless role…
But as his thoughts turned to Marius' last comment, the familiar tension in his hands forced them into fists, and he quickly rounded into an alley behind a row of stalls, snatching up a thin strip of metal about the same size and shape as a baseball bat. Taking a deep breath, he held the pole with white fists and swung it with all his might into the brick wall to his side, grimacing as he felt the shock of the blow pounding through the muscles in his arms.
"WHY—DOES—HE—HAVE—TO—BE—EVERY—WHERE—I—GO—?!" he roared, smashing the pole into the red wall with every word. "WHY—MUST—HIS—MEMORY—STAY—IN—MY—LIFE—FOR—EVER—?!" The rod snapped in two as he bashed it into the bricks, and it left Paul panting for breath as he held the broken piece of metal in one hand, the other half clanging onto the ground. After a few moments, he stared at the shattered beam still clutched between his fingers, and with a quiet curse he threw it onto the concrete to join the other piece. He drew his fist back, focusing himself as he readied to throw it into the bricks instead, but out of nowhere he heard a female voice cry out his name.
"Hey! What the hell are you doing?!" shouted Melody, running into the alley after seeing – and hearing – him from the street. "Sure, just run out of your own ceremony without a word! It's not like we're gonna miss you; it's not like we still need to finish anything!" she shrieked, her face screwed up in anger as she advanced on him.
"Oh, go tell someone who cares," he hissed, still a little out of breath from before as he turned coldly away.
"Hey, don't you turn away from me!" Melody roared, her hand hooking onto his jacket and spinning him back around in her direction. "This is the only week in the year that we have to celebrate, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna let one cocky little punk like you ruin it for the thousands of people who actually came here to enjoy themselves!"
"Well you should have picked someone who 'actually came here to enjoy themselves'," Paul retorted, in a high-pitched imitation of Melody's voice at the end. "I didn't come here for any festival. And I certainly didn't come here to get verbally abused by some uppity brat wearing a wedding veil, either."
"So you came here to insult us all, did you?!"
"I came here for my own reasons; I don't have to share them with you!" he countered, raising his voice above hers.
"Sharing or not, you're still the Chosen One for this festival!" Melody shouted. "And that means playing your part! I've got my part to play, Marius has his part to play, and you've got your part to play, so deal with it!" she seethed, pushing him in the chest. "Get your head out of your—!"
"You're not really doing anything to make me want to go back to that dinner any more than when I left," he sneered. "If you're going to convince me to join you all, you're going to have to do a lot better than what you're saying now."
Melody half-opened her mouth, a witty remark on her tongue, but she held it back as she realised his cunning logic. "Fine," she snapped, turning around and gesturing with a crook of her finger. "Follow me, and I'll tell you about the festival. I'm sure it'll persuade you to stay," she said seriously, and with that she walked to the edge of the alley and tapped her sandal impatiently against the ground, waiting for him to follow.
"It had better," Paul muttered, an irksome look on his face as he trudged up to stand next to her. "What's so important about this stupid festival anyways? It's just a big bunch of moronic tourists dancing around like Beedrill in spring," he noted, crossing his arms and looking coolly at his new tour guide.
"The Legend Festival started a long time ago, before anyone on this island can even remember," she began, leading them down the street they had both come from and weaving through small clusters of people. "We not only celebrated the fertility of the local islands, but we also celebrated the Water's great Guardian, because its protection kept the people of Shamouti Island safe from danger."
"Water's Guardian?" Paul snorted. "Sounds like superstition."
"Well, back when it was first conducted, it was a lot more wholesome and traditional than what it is now," she admitted. "The tourism industry provides a lot for Shamouti, but we've had to, sadly, sacrifice some of our culture to keep things running smoothly nowadays." She paused to stop as a flock of mask-wearing children ran past, excitedly waving their arms up and down as though they were wings, and she giggled as they scampered around. "That's not to say it's not a good thing to see so many people enjoying themselves, either," she added with a smile.
"Could we just skip to the part where I'm supposed to like this festival?" Paul barked irately, rolling his eyes, and the smile slid from Melody's face faster than water off a cliff-face.
"No, we can't skip ahead," she growled, "because you've got to understand what this is all about! So, the finest musician on the island would perform a song to celebrate the Water's Guardian, and on the shortest day of the year – which is tomorrow, this year – a specially selected hero, namely our Chosen One, would travel to the three islands south of Shamouti Island, to collect the treasures on each one!"
"Treasures…?" Paul repeated, his head briefly jerking upwards at the mention of the word. "…What kind of treasures?" he asked, and, although he couldn't see because her back was to him, Melody smirked as she knew that his curiosity had been aroused.
"There's one treasure on each of the three islands," she explained, snatching a toffee apple from a nearby street stall when the vendor was looking the other way. She handed him the apple and continued, "Each one is about the size of that apple. There's the fire treasure on Fire Island, to the east; there's the lightning treasure on Lightning Island, to the west; and in the middle of those two, you can find the ice treasure on—"
"Don't tell me… Ice Island?" Paul said sarcastically, sniffing the treat once before hurling it over his shoulder. "Can't you people come up with some original names for your islands? All I've seen in the Orange Islands are islands that have to do with – ironically enough – oranges!"
"Why else do you think they're called the Orange Islands, you idiot?" she grunted, throwing up her hands in defeat. "It'd be pretty stupid if we called them the Pineapple Islands, or the Eggplant Islands, now wouldn't it?! Geez, the Chosen One is meant to be smart, but I don't see how you fooled Marius into believing that you are," she added bitingly, grinning when she heard Paul growl between his teeth behind her.
"Again, not helping your people's chances of getting their 'Chosen One' back in time for the festivities," he snarled. "And for that matter, what's the point of having a Chosen One, anyways?! Surely any idiot could just take a boat over and get the treasures himself!"
"But that way, we wouldn't have just the one idiot who stands out above the rest!" Melody replied, in a honey-sweet voice dripping with sarcasm as she turned her head. Paul pursed his lips in anger, possibly imagining all the different ways to injure her without being noticed in a public place, but he kept silent as he impatiently waited for her explanation. "The Chosen One is foretold in the legend of Shamouti Island. Hence why it's called the Legend Festival! Are you… are you starting to see the connections here, now?" she asked, using the tone one would when addressing a five-year-old.
"I'm no stranger to sarcasm, so just get to the point," he growled.
"Gladly!" she huffed, marching briskly down the street again. "There's a legend, in a stone temple right on the other side of this island, which foretells of a great disturbance in the balance of nature. When this imbalance occurs, a great catastrophe will threaten to destroy the world, but the legend also foretells of the appearance of a Chosen One; a great Pokémon Trainer who would unite the three treasures, and, with the help of the Water's great Guardian, tame the Beast Of The Sea. Oh," she added, "the Beast Of The Sea is basically this underwater current that runs through this part of the Orange Islands."
"So… the Chosen One would be a Pokémon Trainer that was prophesised to save the world from destruction?"
"You got it," she said brightly, turning a corner, and the two found themselves back in the square where Paul had battled Corey and Neesha earlier. "It's pretty funny, actually…" she giggled, and Paul turned his head as she slowed to a stop.
"What is it now?" he grumbled.
"The legend said all along who the Chosen One would be, and no-one ever figured it out until he came along a few years ago," she muttered, her eyes becoming slightly unfocused. "It even gave us his name! Can you believe that?" she laughed, but Paul didn't seem to get the humour, so she went on. "We'd always thought it was a bit of a doomsday saying, because it said; 'Though the Water's great Guardian shall rise to quell to fighting, Alone its song will fail. Thus the earth shall turn to ash.'"
"Thus the earth shall turn to ash…?" he snorted.
"Yeah, we always used to believe that the world would be engulfed in flames or something," Melody shrugged, looking over at the platform in the centre of the square, where Corey and Neesha were leading a collection of partners performing the tango. "But the Chosen One was actually a Trainer called Ash! The earth turned to ash, but ash was really Ash Ketchum! And I gotta say, he fitted the bill of a Chosen One, too," she said excitedly, swinging around to face Paul, but she blinked when she saw a flash of raw fury sweep over his face.
"What's wrong with you?" she asked, a little too callously.
"Ketchum…" he spat, his expression contorted with anger as he turned to look the other way. Melody frowned and marched around to stand in front of him, arms folded as she leant into his line of vision and blocked his way out of the square.
"Hey, I said what's wrong! Didn't you hear me?!" she shouted provokingly, but she stopped short when she saw Paul's eyes swivel around to meet hers, focusing on her like a laser beam. His arm whipped up from his side, and in the blink of an eye his hand clamped down on Melody's arm with a grip of iron, making her exclaim in surprise and anger as she felt his fingers digging in.
"Don't—" he pulled her towards him, grabbing her chin roughly with his other hand, "—you ever compare me to that name again…" he hissed, his voice like sizzling meat. Melody's face trembled, almost feeling the hatred coming out of the boy, and he gave her another contemptuous glare before he tossed her aside, sending her crashing onto the hard stone tiles. "I'm nothing like him…" he growled, giving no sympathy to Melody as she pushed her torso up off the ground.
"You're right…" she mumbled, picking herself up and fixing the bag slung across her body. "You're not like Ash at all!" she shrieked, and Paul's mouth twitched in disgust. "You're just a mean, arrogant bully! Ash was the real Chosen One, and he lived up to it! He ran straight into trouble without thinking twice, but you just like causing trouble! He's capable of being a nice guy! He even fought the Legendary Bird Pokémon to try and save the world—" she argued, but she stopped and smirked when Paul's head jerked upwards and turned towards her.
"What did you just say?" he whispered, walking to her and stopping a step or two away. "Legendary Bird Pokémon?"
"That's right. The three guardians of the treasures are all Legendary Pokémon," she told him, another haughty smirk forming on her lips. "Moltres, who protects the sphere of Fire; Articuno, who protects the sphere of Ice; and Zapdos, who protects the sphere of Lightning. You didn't just think that you'd be able to get your hands on the treasures like they were pieces of fruit at market, did you?" she laughed bitterly.
"Is that why you don't have any idiot going after them?" Paul muttered. "You've got three flying feather-dusters playing guard?!" he yelled with a cruel laugh, his voice echoing around the square. The music slowly shuddered to a stop, and so did all forms of festivity as well, as the townspeople swung around to see the person who had just insulted the bird Pokémon. Melody slowly began to back away from Paul as the small crowd closed in, but he stood firm as the mob began to form a ring around him.
"What gives you the right to insult our traditions?!"
"Moltres could reduce you to cinders without any effort at all if it heard you call it a feather-duster!"
"Who are you to mock a Legendary Pokémon?!"
"I'm the Trainer who has to supposedly get their treasures," Paul growled, his eyes sweeping around as the crowd immediately fell silent. He grunted a laugh at the looks of shock over their faces, and he strode forwards to leave, pushing aside those who didn't move out of his way. "Now get back to your mundane celebrations and don't question me again," he hissed over his back, the stunned silence continuing even as Melody awkwardly weaved through to the edge of the crowd and followed Paul down the street.
"You sure know how to charm a crowd," she muttered darkly, a frown plastered on her face.
"I don't need to impress people I don't care about," he said simply, casting a lazy eye at her as she kept pace beside him. "Why do you think I'm not trying to impress you?" he added, and Melody's mouth fell open in indignant anger as he faced forwards and started to walk faster.
"Hey, listen here, you twerp," she snarled, jogging ahead and rounding on him. "You're part of this festival whether you like it or not, so you'd better get used to it now. We can do this the easy way or the hard way; it's up to you."
"What could you possibly do to make things hard for me?" Paul drawled, raising an eyebrow at her. "You're not particularly threatening—" he looked her up and down, "in any way imaginable."
"Who said I'd be the one?" she smirked. "Marius may be an old man, but he's used to getting what he wants. And when he doesn't get what he wants… well, let's just say he changes it to suit what he wants," she explained, an evil glint in her eyes, and Paul shifted uncomfortably on the spot. It took a whole minute of unnerving silence before Paul spoke up again, and he made sure to pick his next words carefully.
"Fine," he said, "but how I get the spheres is up to me, okay?"
"Melody!" hissed Marius, his eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets as she and Paul emerged from the darkness outside the banquet hall. "Where have you been?! I've had to entertain these people for more than half an hour!" He waved a hand across the hall, and Melody saw a room full of disgruntled tourists impatiently looking her way. She also noticed that there seemed to be a few empty seats that hadn't been there when Paul had stormed away earlier in the night.
"What did you entertain them with?" she muttered back. "Did you tell them one of those boring seafaring stories of yours?"
"I had to tell them four!"
"That explains a lot," she giggled.
"They just don't understand the experiences of a sailor!" he said fiercely. "I've never been so uncomfortable at a Legend Festival in my life! Now hurry up and finish the ceremony so we can move on! That includes you too, boy!" he added to Paul, who turned his eyes up at the ceiling and nodded his head absent-mindedly. "Remember, this is the centrepiece of the festival!"
"Come on, Marius, since when have I ever let the tourists down?" Melody winked, snapping her fingers at Paul. "Don't just stand there; go and sit in your seat while I perform the last part of the ceremony!" she instructed bossily. Paul remained silent and stalked back to his seat nearest the stage, helping himself to a pear as Marius ushered Melody onto the stage.
Okay, Melody, just get through this thing and you'll never have to put up with… him— she shot him a nasty look that he ignored, again. And then the festival can go ahead like it always has… she thought reassuringly, taking her ocarina out of the cloth bag and putting it up to her mouth. Within moments, the hall was filled with the sound of beautiful music, and the previously restless hall settled down into a gentle lull as they enjoyed the sound of her playing again.
After a minute or so, Melody let the last piercing note ring out from her instrument, tucking the flute back into her bag as she hopped down from the stage and moved towards Paul, who drummed his fingers on the surface of the table and looked out at the tiny lights dotting the landscape of the island. "Hear ye all!" she called out, her voice much more impassioned and dramatic to fit her role. "From the trio of islands, ancient spheres shall you take! For between life and death, all the diff'rence you'll make!"
"Hmph…"
A nerve twitched in Melody's temple, but with a forced smile she grabbed Paul's hand and lifted him to his feet. With the eyes of the entire hall upon them, she took a quick breath and planted a kiss on his cheek, just like she had a little under an hour before. Paul purposefully looked away, a small tick in his jaw as she moved away, and Melody felt a hot flush of anger at the tiny expression.
"O Chosen One," she continued, her voice a little rougher than it had just been, "You must climb to the shrine to right what is wrong, and the world will be healed by the Guardian's song!" The crowd burst into applause as she rose her arms towards the roof, and even she allowed a small smile to escape her. Paul however, did nothing but glance briefly in her direction, appearing to be interested in her ear as the applause continued.
"At least show some positivity about your role," she hissed at Paul, her voice going unheard by the other people in the hall, who had stood up and were filing out to enjoy the rest of the night's entertainment. "Don't be such a grumpy little Wartortle…" she added, reaching down towards the table, snatching up a Magost berry from a nearby platter and cramming it into her mouth as she turned away.
"When you know me, you can judge me," she heard him say flatly. By the time she dropped the pith back onto the table and looked around, he had disappeared into the exiting crowd that was making its way back down the road towards the square. She stood up at once, wondering how he'd manage to slip away so quietly, but then she frowned.
Like he'd ever let anyone know if he was going anywhere, she realised. I wonder what that guy's problem is. He could learn a lot just by having some fun… he looks like the kind of person who'd only crack a smile if you pumped him full of Sitrus wine at a party…
"Great work with the song, Melody!" said a female voice behind her, breaking through her bitter thoughts, and she spun around when a pair of hands slapped down on her shoulders.
"Carol!" she exclaimed, seeing her older sister standing in front of her. Carol was a woman in her late teens – or possibly her early twenties – with a shock of short mahogany hair, her face framed by a pair of feather-like earrings. She, like Marius, was dressed in the traditional festival robe, which was simply a plain white with red at the collar and the ends of the sleeves.
"We were wondering where you'd gone off to!" Carol smiled. She looked at a spot over Melody's shoulder and then looked back at her, a wry smirk on her face. "So, who's the Chosen One?" she asked, and Melody blinked.
"Umm…" she frowned as she tried to remember hearing his name. "I think Marius called him Paul right before he stormed off…" she shrugged.
"Paul, eh? He's pretty cute, isn't he?" Carol giggled, nudging her sister in the ribs. Melody nodded absent-mindedly, not really registering the words for a few moments, but when they did, she jumped backwards with a shout.
"Carol?! Ewww! No way! He's a total jerk!" she cried out, shuddering at the thought. "You saw the way he acted during my performance!" she added, but Carol laughed again and waved her hand dismissively.
"Alright, alright. Sorry for bringing it up," she groaned. "But he's this year's Chosen One, so even if you wanna throw him off a cliff, you two are gonna have to get along."
"I know, it's for the tourists," Melody droned, her shoulders sagging. She looked around again, and grunted in surprise as she realised that she and Carol were the only ones left in the hall; apparently, everyone else had either gone to the centre of town for more festivities, or they had gone to a hotel for sleep. The thought of sleep trickled into Melody's thoughts, and she gave a huge yawn as a wave of fatigue hit her full-on.
"Geez, it was just one song and dance!" Carol jested, throwing an arm over Melody's shoulders. "It can't have tired you out that much! Come on, let's go back into town and grab some Cinnabar Volcano Burgers! I know you love exotic food!" she offered, giving her a playful shake. Melody considered the proposal for a moment or two, but then she shook her head and batted Carol's arm away.
"No, I've just had a long day, I think…" she muttered, rubbing at her eye. "I feel really drained… I'm just going to head back home and get some—some sleep—!" she yawned again, almost falling asleep on her feet as she tried to force the drowsiness out of her body.
Carol sighed, but shrugged and smiled as she gave her sister a wink. "Okay, but if you change your mind, you'll find me with Maren, down by the harbour in my boat, alright?" she said, giving Melody a quick hug.
"Yeah, but don't hold your breath for me," she sniggered.
TO BE CONTINUED…